Cancer in its different forms is a major cause of death in humans. The most widely used therapeutic treatments of cancer are local therapy, such as surgery and radiation, or chemotherapy. The rapid increase of knowledge in recent years about the molecular and cellular bases of immune regulation, particularly at the level of T-cell responses, provides a new arsenal of immunotherapeutic approaches including the development of tumor vaccines. Tumor vaccine is administered for therapeutic or preventive purposes. This can include administration of immuno-potentiating agents as well as biological response modifiers such as interferons and interleukins, in order to stimulate the immune system.
Vaccination with an antigen molecule, such as a peptide or a protein, generally leads to an antibody response or CD4+ helper T cell response (Raychaudhuri et al., 1993 Immunol Today 14:344). This immune response is initiated by the binding of the antigen to selected major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules of either Class I or Class II. The latter molecules are expressed primarily on cells involved in initiating and sustaining immune responses such as T lymphocytes, B lymphocytes and macrophages. Class II molecules are recognized by CD4+ helper T cell and induce their proliferation and the amplification of the immune response to the epitope that is displayed. Class I MHC molecules are found on most nucleated cells and are recognized by cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) which destroy the antigen bearing cells. The CTL response is a major component of the immune system, active in immune surveillance and destruction of infected or malignant cells and invading organisms expressing foreign antigens on their surface. The ligand of the antigen-specific T lymphocyte receptor is a complex made up of a peptide fragment of a foreign antigen 8 to 10 amino acids in length, presented in the groove of MHC class I molecules. Unlike B cells, T cells do not recognize intact native antigen molecules. In general, cytotoxic T cell activation requires that the antigen be processed endogenously and cleaved into specific peptide fragments which are presented on the surface of antigen processing cells in association with class I MHC molecules.
Accordingly, a successful vaccine for cancer immunotherapy requires the identification of a target antigen and the production of a cytotoxic T cell response. Moreover, identification of cell surface antigens expressed exclusively or preferentially on certain tumors allows the formation of selective treatment strategies.
Numerous disclosures exist concerning immunomodulatory peptides. WO94/20127 discloses means and methods for selecting immunogenic peptides capable of specifically binding HLA-A2.1 allele and inducing T-cell activation. WO95/19783 relates to peptides based on an epitope derived from the product of the tumor associated gene MAGE-3. WO97/11715 discloses a peptide which mimics MUCI or other cancer peptides. WO00/06723 discloses tumor specific antigen peptides and use thereof as anti-tumor vaccines. U.S. Pat. No. 6,406,700 discloses methods for isolating immunogenic complexes by using a cDNA library from cancer cell RNA.
International patent applications WO95/20605 and WO00/58363 which are incorporated herein by reference, describe a novel monoclonal antibody designated BAT-1, also designated herein BAT, which induces lymphocyte proliferation and cytolytic activity against tumor target cells. A single intravenous administration of BAT into mice bearing various tumors resulted in striking anti-tumor effects manifested by regression of tumors and prolongation of survival. BAT also induced regression of human tumor xenografts transplanted into SCID mice that were engrafted with human peripheral blood lymphocytes. The anti-tumor activity of BAT is mediated by its immune stimulatory properties as was evident from adoptive transfer experiments in which splenocytes from BAT treated mice injected to mice bearing tumors induced regression of tumors. The membrane determinant recognized by BAT has not yet been identified or characterized.
Several alternative methods of identifying the peptide epitopes bound by monoclonal antibodies are recognized in the art. These methods include the use of phage display libraries such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos.: 5,223,409; 5,403,484; 5,571,698; 5,837,500 and continuations thereto. Phage display involves a selection technique enabling identification and isolation of a protein against a chosen target. The selection procedure is based on DNA molecules, each encoding a protein and a structural signal calling for the display of the protein on the outer surface of a bacteriophage. The protein is expressed and the potential binding domain is displayed on the outer surface of the phage. The cells or viruses bearing the binding domains which recognize the target molecule are isolated, by a repetitive selection process called biopanning, and amplified. The successful binding domains are then characterized.
Epitope libraries can also be screened for epitope sequences which mimic the epitope, i.e., sequences which do not identify a continuous linear native sequence that necessarily occurs within a natural protein sequence. These mimicking peptides are called mimotopes. In most cases mimotopes are short peptides which can be readily synthesized in large amounts. Mimotopes of various binding sites have been found. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,877,155 provides an isolated peptide that functionally mimics a binding site for a monoclonal antibody, the monoclonal antibody recognizing an epitope within the human platelet glycoprotein Ib/IX complex.
There is an unmet medical need for peptides capable of eliciting or stimulating an anti-tumor immune response in vivo.